Another story that doesn�t have anything to do with meeting the band, but still entertaining�
Mike and I have what we call a �five-year rule�. It�s in reference to all the things we do that we can�t quite tell our parents about until five years after they happen, mostly because we think it will take them that long to see the humor in it. I�m trying to think back to what we did in 2000 so that I can tell my parents the next time I see them. I�m not quite sure, but I�m sure it has something to do with fireworks.
In any case, our trip to Cleveland in November of 1996 for a Led Zeppelin convention easily met the criteria for a �five-year rule� classification. Mostly because we probably skipped a couple of classes to go and had better things to spend our money on like rent, food, insurance, clothes, books, etc�I did however work three jobs that semester, so the guilt wasn�t great enough to prevent us from going.
So from La Crosse, Wis. I loaded up my dad�s hand-me-down 1991 Oldsmobile Cutlass Ciera and set off for Chicago to pick up Mike who was flying in from Phoenix. After picking him up around 11:00pm, we set out on the 80/90 toll road in northern Indiana heading west to Cleveland.
After realizing we were O.K., we exited the car and began to pick up random parts that were in the general area. Mike seemed to be amused that although the headlight was lying on the ground, it was still illuminated since the wires were still technically attached. As I was putting part of the bumper in the trunk, a toll booth attendant approached us and said she had called the state trooper. At that point I figured covering this one up was going to be a challenge. The �five-year rule� didn�t look like it would apply any longer and I had a feeling that the humor of the situation was going to be lost in translation when I told my dad.
The fuzz arrived, took some statements, and issued me a citation for inattentive driving or some hogwash like that.
The cop�s attention then turned towards the damaged car. He said that with the headlight lying on the ground, he would deem it inoperable and have to impound it
Not wanting to get pulled over for having one headlight later on down the road, I opened the trunk to see what exactly I meant by �tools�. Evidently I was referring to an original 8-bit Nintendo Entertainment System, that for some reason, I had in the trunk of my car.
We used the controllers to secure the headlight the best we could, but it wasn�t quite stable enough. The only other means of securing anything was the shoelaces in our shoes. Satisfied with the results, we got in the car and forged on.
After a few miles, we noticed that whenever we were passing someone on the left, as we were directly next to them, an uncharacteristic beam of light shone directly in the other driver�s face. Our modification had failed.
Feeling ballsy, we continued on, arriving at our hotel in Cleveland at 7:00am the next morning.
Hoping that when I looked at the car the next day, the damage would somehow seem less significant, we surveyed the damage again. It was still pretty much the same as the day before.
So the debate was this: call my dad now, or enjoy the weekend, drive back home and call my dad next week. For nostalgia�s sake, I made an exception to the �five-year rule� and introduced an expedited version, the �five-day rule�. �
After dropping off Mike at the airport in Cleveland, I began the long and lonely 624-mile drive back to La Crosse only to arrive and be reminded that I had a mid-term in my nutrition class at 8:00am the next morning.
I figured I�d wing it vs. actually studying, and unfortunately my years of eating gas station burritos and Nerds didn�t prepare me well for a nutrition exam. Needless to say, I didn�t too to well on the exam. And luckily, the fallout from our little excursion gone bad wasn�t too terrible after all.
Thanks for Reading,
A.L./M.T
